Ivanildo Fernandes

Ivanildo Jorge Mendes Fernandes (born 26 March 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a central defender for Emirati club Ittihad Kalba.

Ivanildo Fernandes
Personal information
Full nameIvanildo Jorge Mendes Fernandes[1]
Date of birth (1996-03-26) 26 March 1996 (age 28)[1]
Place of birthAmadora, Portugal[1]
Height1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)[1]
Position(s)Centre-back
Team information
Current team
Ittihad Kalba
Number6
Youth career
2007–2008Damaiense
2008–2011Estrela Amadora
2011–2014Casa Pia
2014–2015Sporting CP
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2015–2021Sporting CP B83(2)
2018–2019Moreirense (loan)24(1)
2019–2020Trabzonspor (loan)3(0)
2020Çaykur Rizespor (loan)11(1)
2021Almería (loan)14(0)
2021–2023Vizela37(0)
2023–Ittihad Kalba2(0)
International career
2014–2015Portugal U195(0)
2016Portugal U203(0)
2018Portugal U211(0)
2023–Cape Verde1(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:43, 18 September 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 04:45, 31 March 2023 (UTC)

Born in Portugal, he plays for the Cape Verde national team.

Club career

Born in Amadora, Lisbon metropolitan area of Cape Verdean descent, Fernandes joined Sporting CP's academy at the age of 18.[2] He spent his first three seasons as senior with the reserves in the Segunda Liga, his maiden appearance in the competition taking place on 20 September 2015 in a 2–1 away win against S.C. Freamunde where he played the 90 minutes.[3]

Fernandes scored his first league goal on 24 August 2016, in a 1–1 away draw with F.C. Famalicão.[4] He finished the campaign with a further goal[5] from 35 appearances, helping to a 14th-place finish. In November 2017, due to injuries to the defensive sector of the first team, he was called for a Taça de Portugal match against Famalicão,[2] but remained unused in the 2–0 victory.[6]

On 27 July 2018, Fernandes was loaned to Moreirense FC.[7] He made his debut in the Primeira Liga on 19 August, playing the entire 2–1 win at C.D. Nacional.[8]

On 31 December 2020, after serving subsequent loans at Turkish clubs Trabzonspor and Çaykur Rizespor, Fernandes joined Spanish Segunda División side UD Almería on loan for the remainder of the season.[9] In the ensuing summer, he signed a permanent three-year contract with F.C. Vizela who had just been promoted to the Portuguese top division.[10]

Fernandes agreed to a deal at newly-promoted UAE Pro League side Ittihad Kalba FC on 5 August 2023.[11]

International career

Portugal

Fernandes won his only cap for the Portugal under-21 side on 11 October 2018, in a 9–0 demolition of Liechtenstein for the 2019 UEFA European Championship qualifiers at the Rheinpark Stadion.[12]

Cape Verde

After switching his allegiance in March 2023,[13] Fernandes debuted with the senior Cape Verde national team later that month in a 1–0 away win over Eswatini in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification campaign.[14]

Career statistics

As of match played on 11 March 2023[15]
Club statistics
ClubSeasonLeagueCupLeague CupOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Sporting CP B2016–17LigaPro160000000160
2016–17352000000352
2017–18320000000320
2018–190000000000
2019–200000000000
2020–210000000000
Total832000000832
Moreirense (loan)2018–19Primeira Liga241200000261
Trabzonspor (loan)2019–20Süper Lig3031005[a]0111
Çaykur Rizespor (loan)2019–20Süper Lig111100000121
Almería (loan)2020–21Segunda División14020001[b]0170
Vizela2020–21Liga Portugal 2170200000190
2021–22Primeira Liga140102000170
Total310302000360
Career totals166411120601855

Honours

Trabzonspor

References